Looking for natural ways to color your Easter eggs this year? Learn how to make natural dyes for your easter eggs this year. You can create different colors with plants, spices, and herbs found in your kitchen.
Easter is a special time of year in my home. We spend time with our closest friends and family members and enjoy the warm spring weather outdoors.
What I don’tdon’t particularly love about easter is the access to sugary treats and neon easter eggs. So this year, we are reducing the easter treats our kids consume, and instead of dying our hard-boiled eggs with artificial colors, we’re dying them natural ingredients like foods and spices we have in our kitchen.
I spent a few weeks testing different produce, spices, and even tea and, through trial and error, found which foods produced the most vibrant colors. My children joined in on the experiment and helped me decorate our eggs with foliage from the yard. Dyeing eggs naturally was a much longer process than traditional dying, but we enjoyed the time together!
How To Dye Easter Eggs Naturally
You can create beautiful earth-toned easter eggs with various fruits, vegetables, and spices. For example, red cabbage (or purple cabbage) created the loveliest blue-colored eggs, beets turned our eggs red-purple color, turmeric made our eggs bright yellow, yellow onion skins or red onion skins made gorgeous orange caramel-brown eggs, and hibiscus tea left the eggs a dark charcoal-purple color.
We also tested matcha, spirulina powder, chamomile tea, and paprika. I wasn’twasn’t impressed with the colors of these dyes. The matcha made very light green eggs; the paprika made them a light brown-red color, the chamomile left them a light yellow, and the spirulina powder didn’tdidn’t change the color at all. On the other hand, I loved the color of the eggs dyed with red onions, which were vibrant and beautiful!
Natural Dyed Easter Eggs
You will need boiled eggs, vegetables like onions, cabbage, beets, or herbs like turmeric or hibiscus, vinegar, and a few cups of water.
- To prepare natural food dye, you’ll need to start with 1 cup of chopped fruit or veggie or 1 tablespoon of spice and boil it in 2 cups of water.
- The longer you boil, the richer the color! Strain the dye through a fine-mesh strainer and into jars or a bowl.
- Next, you’ll want to add 1 teaspoon of white vinegar to the color. This step is essential because vinegar helps the colors absorb into the shell, making the eggs more vibrant.
- Leave the eggs (don’t use raw eggs) in the color mixture until they reach desired color and shades. I left mine in the mixture for 12 hours. Note: If you’d like to decorate the eggs, follow the next steps, where I share a great way to decorate eggs with plants in your garden!
- Remove the dyed eggs from the dye bath and place them on a towel-lined (you can use paper towels) cookie sheet to dry.
- Allow them to dry completely before removing the decorations (this will reduce the number of scuffs and marks on the eggs).
- Place dried eggs in an empty egg carton and store in the refrigerator. These eggs are edible and are wonderful to use at an easter egg hunt!
List of Natural Easter Egg Dyes
- Red Cabbage: Blue Dye
- Red Onions: Red-Brown
- Yellow Onion: Orange-Caramel
- Beets: Dark Pink to Red Dye
- Turmeric: Bright Yellow
Decorating Eggs
To decorate eggs, we used grass, dandelions, and flowers found in our yard. We dipped the flowers in water and placed them in the egg. The water helped them to stay in place. Then we used old pantyhose, cut up into pieces, to secure the flower on the egg while dying. Secure the pantyhose with kitchen twine or rubber bands before placing them in the dye bath.
This was by far the most time we’ve spent decorating Easter eggs, and it was the funnest too!
Related:
PrintHow To Dye Easter Eggs Naturally
Learn how to dye easter eggs naturally with everyday ingredients you have in your kitchen!
- Prep Time: 2 hours
- Cook Time: 1 hour
- Total Time: 3 hours + Dying Time
- Yield: 1 3/4 Cup Dye 1x
- Category: DIY
- Cuisine: American
Ingredients
- 1 cup chopped red cabbage, chopped beets, onion skins or one tablespoon turmeric powder or one cup strong brewed hibiscus tea
- 2 cups Water
- 1 Teaspoon Vinegar
- Boiled Eggs (I used white eggs)
Vegetable Colors:
- Red Cabbage: Blue Dye = Blue Eggs
- Red Onions: Red-Brown = Dark Red/Burgundy Eggs
- Yellow Onion: Orange-Caramel = Orange Eggs
- Beets: Dark Pink to Red Dye = Red Eggs
- Turmeric: Bright Yellow = Yellow Eggs
- Hibiscus Tea: Dark Purple = Purple/Grey Eggs
Instructions
- Bring 2 cups of water to a boil.
- Add chopped veggies, fruits, or spices to the pot.
- Reduce the heat to medium and let the water simmer for 15-20 minutes.
- Take the pot off the heat and let it cool.
- Strain the material with a fine mesh strainer and pour the dye water into containers or jars.
- Add 1 teaspoon of vinegar to the dye water and stir to incorporate.
- Carefully put the boiled eggs into the jar of dye and secure it with a lid.
- Place the jar in the refrigerator and let the eggs dye for 6 – 12 hours; the longer, the better.
- Remove the eggs from the jar and place them on a towel-lined cookie sheet to dry.
- Allow them to dry completely before removing the decorations (this will reduce the number of scuffs and marks on the eggs).
Notes
- Colors vary depending on how long you allow the eggs to soak in the dye.
- Fresh fruits and veggies produce richer color than prepackaged or canned veggies.
Nutrition Facts
- Serving Size: 1
- Calories: 1
Just did this and put the eggs in the fridge. Can’t wait to see how they turn out. Will they be edible?
★★★★★
Yes, these eggs are edible!
★★★★★